30-30 medicine gun

[Jack]

YukonGirl, welcome to HuntChat.
A Mossberg smoothbore barrel will come with 3 choke tubes- Improved Cylinder, Modified, and Full. Those 3 will cover most things you'd want to do with shotshells.
As far as firing slugs, there are a few ways to go. The rifled barrels will fire sabot slugs quite accurately. However, the rifled barrel is a specialty item- it's really good only for slugs.
Another option is to shoot slugs out of the smoothbore barrel. Not as accurate as the rifled barrels, but you can use one smoothbore barrel for shot, slugs, and buckshot, too- more versatile.
Usually the Improved Cylinder choke tube will work best with slugs in a smoothbore. Use the Foster type, traditional slugs- they usually do as well or better than sabots in smoothbore barrels.
A third option is a rifled choke tube. Generally you have to buy that separately. Not as good as a rifled barrel, in terms of accuracy, but usually better than a smoothbore- kind of a compromise.
That should be enough to be confusing!

[Adam Helmer]

YukonGirl,

I have a Fireview stove in the living room that heats the entire house.

Your handgun laws about "being a member of a gun club," "target only," and "being a handgun competition shooter" and such are identical to the handgun restrictions in Massachusetts.

The Yukon is 4 times+ larger that Pennsylvania with far fewer people. You advise you cannot carry your handgun into that remote area, unless you are headed for a pistol match. It seems the laws are anti-gun and not anti-criminal. I always carry a pistol afield on treks about my farm and nobody gives a hoot.

Be well.

Adam

[YukonGirl]

Hi Jack,

My Mossberg 500 has a smoothbore barrel, but it didn't come with any chokes. If I'm following you, I may not need any other barrels for shooting deer-- I can just get an improved cylinder choke and some Foster slugs. (Without the choke I'm thinking I won't get much accuracy at any real distance.)

Is that right?

Thanks for your help.

[YukonGirl]

Adam, I think that's a fair summary-- Canada's gun laws are "anti-gun and not anti-criminal."

Even if the gun laws are the same across Canada, people's opinions and attitudes toward guns and hunting is much more relaxed in the Yukon than say, Vancouver in British Columbia. When I've purchased guns in Vancouver, they've wrapped them up in brown paper so nobody knows what you have. People treat owning guns like it's something to be ashamed of.

I'll never forget the first time I bought a rifle in the Yukon. The guy just handed it to me over the counter with the receipt. I stared at him waiting for him to wrap it up and he looked at me like I was from Mars. By the way, if you're *not* a gun owner up there, they think that's strange.

I'm sure there are people up north with larger properties who do the same as you and carry their handgun if they own one. It's just sensible and I wish others would see it that way. But then, I don't have to convince anyone here of that.

[skeet]

YG..

the easiest thing to do is acquire a 26inch vent rib bbl with screw in chokes. You really don't need a rifled bore gun to shoot slugs. I have shot over 250 deer with smooth bore guns..mostly 1100's with a skeet or improved cylinder choked bbl. You should attempt to keep the ranges under 100 yds if possible. Have a fellow here that carries a Mossy 590 on horseback with 9 slugs ready to rock and roll. If you need the gun to shoot them big deer up there you're gonna do it under 50 yds or so I'd say and the 12 ga foster slug is a formidable chunk of lead when it comes to griz. It is the gun and load of choice for the outfitters taking people fishing and hunting here in Wy. The griz here really isn't afraid of people. A fellow I know was mauled by one this year while calling elk for his father. Dad killed it with a bow.. yep a bow. They had a shotgun but not close enough to get to in the short time they had. 12 ga barrel with screw chokes will do all you will ever need it for...from grouse and ducks to moose and griz. If you were in the US I'd send ya one.

[VaRedneck]

Another big fan of the Marlin 336 in 30-30, for all the previous listed reasons. It was also the first weapon I bought for myself.

re smooth bore and slugs.

I've an 870 w/ a vented rib smooth bore. Back in the day I used rifled slugs and a modified choke, putting holes in milk jugs at a hundred yards was a regular thing.

[YukonGirl]

Skeet and VaRedneck-- I guess the good news is I can get by with my Mossy 500 to do the things I want to do most: take grouse, deer, and keep myself safe from bears. The bad news is I don't have a good excuse to get myself a .30-30, though I'm sure I'll come up with one eventually.

Here's another stupid question, and I appreciate your patience. Being fairly short, can I get by with a shorter barrel length, say a 24", or do I need a 26" to ensure more accuracy?

And wow, a bow? I believe you because you can't make that stuff up. Your friend is a lucky guy. And I'll bet his dad is just as grateful.

[skeet]

Sure if you want a shorter bbl. Don't go much shorter than 24 though. What you loose is the sighting plane...which makes hitting..say..a flying bird just a little more difficult. I had a Benelli with a 24 incher..I didn't particularly like it. But you may. Contrary to conventional wisdom I used 26 in bbls for waterfowl. It worked fine for me. Do get a screw in choke barrel though

[YukonGirl]

I think what might be even harder for me than finding an extra barrel for my shotgun is waiting for hunting season to start... At least now I know what to look for. Thanks to you guys.

I really appreciate the help. And my apologies for turning a thread about .30-30's into one about shotguns...

[GoodOlBoy]

YG thats perfectly alright, although if you want alot of shotgun interest you might take it over to the scatterguns forum. Myself I was raised on shotguns, owned one at age 6, didn't own a rifle until I was 14.

GoodOlBoy

[YukonGirl]

GoodOlBoy, will do. And in the meantime, if anyone is lucky enough to try out Mossberg's 464, I'd love to hear about it.

[GoodOlBoy]

You and me both. I have been eyeballing it ever since it came out, but don't have a good enough excuse with my wife to try to acquire one.

GoodOlBoy

[YukonGirl]

I picked up a sweet-looking Henry lever action .22 this summer. Had a lot of fun plinking and shooting grouse with it in the fall.

But now I'm getting greedy. I want that 464.

Maybe you can borrow one to put in your wife's hands. Then she might just see it the way we do.

Except then you'd probably have to buy two of them.

[wrenchman]

yukongirl i have many guns and most are not about a need they are about wants.
Some guys drink there money some guys have hobbys i fall in the
second part i collect guns.
I have seen the gun you are talking about and dont feal you could go wrong with with it and the thing about the 30/30 is most the ladys i no like the levar guns becouse they tend to fit them well.
Henry makes a 30/30 also but it is heavyer then the other guns.

[GoodOlBoy]

Actually the wife currently is looking at a levergun in 357 to match her 1871 outlaw. If I could talk her into 30-30 I would already have one on order, but she hates how bad my marlin kicks her (I really don't notice it.)

GoodOlBoy